


Elements Of Love

by cisco_imfineashell_ramon



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M, Reader Has Powers, Reader-Insert, also caitlin embraces her kf powers and uses them for good, but no idea how long that will take, iris caitlin and reader are friends, reader and cisco will end up together, there is plenty of flirting from both though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-03-24
Packaged: 2018-10-07 20:14:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10368540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cisco_imfineashell_ramon/pseuds/cisco_imfineashell_ramon
Summary: The reader is a meta with the power to control the four elements. After a run in with The Flash, she's brought back to STAR Labs for medical attention. There she receives the offer to not only join and train with Team Flash, but to stay at Cisco's apartment with him.





	1. Chapter 1

“No one needs to get hurt here, Flash,” you said, eyeing the exit, the only place not blocked off by fire yet. Before you knew what was happening, The Flash had sped towards you and grabbed your wrist. Without thinking you returned his grip and sent heat through the palm of your hand to his until he dropped your hand and sped to the front of the store. 

“I told you, I don’t want to hurt you!” you shouted, cradling a fireball in your hand, hesitant but ready. 

“And you won’t,” you heard The Flash call back, right before he started speeding his arms around in a circle. Confusion spread across your face for a moment, until you noticed your fireball, and the fire you had set to the store in an attempt to slip through the back, disappearing. The air you breathed was now suffocating, smothering you along with your flames.

“Please,” you struggled to get out. You attempted to make another fireball and failed. Just then The Flash began circling you, a blur surrounding you with no way out. Time to change tactics.

You let your mind relax, focusing all your energy on what you needed. You felt a chill run down your spine and smiled, yes. Summoning all your strength you tilted your head back and spread your arms wide, allowing icicles to shoot forth from your entire body. All you needed was for one of them to hit Flash and you could get away while he was down. You sent another burst, the deadly ice spreading out of you in a circle. This time he slowed, doubling over and gripping the icicle that was now sticking out of the side of his abdomen. 

“I’m sorry,” you said backing away quickly. “I never wanted this.” And you meant it. All you wanted was to get back the wedding band you’d pawned. The owner had told you he’d hold it for a week and sell it back same price, but when you came in four days later, he demanded twice as much as promised. 

You sprinted through the back exit and made it back to the abandoned building you’d been staying. Then The Flash found you. 

 

When you woke up you were in some sort of hospital, except no, this wasn’t a hospital at all. Before you could wonder where exactly you were, you heard the sound of heels hitting the floor, growing nearer. You looked up at the woman now standing over you, hair pulled back neatly and lab coat open to reveal a grey dress. 

“I’m Dr. Snow, how do you feel?” she asked, holding a small light in front of your eyes. You sat upright.

“I’m… fine. Head hurts like a bitch, though.”

“That’ll happen with a concussion. It’s minor, though so you shouldn’t worry too much. Just tell me if you start to feel any other symptoms.”

“Concussion?” 

“Minor, like I said.” 

“Where the hell am I?” you asked, growing nervous. 

“STAR Labs, the medbay to be specific.” At your confused looks she continued on, “The Flash brought you here after he knocked you out.”

“Right, well, I’ll just be going now,” you started. 

“Yeah that’s not gonna happen,” said The Flash from where he was now standing in the doorway. “Is she ready?” he asked Snow. When she nodded in reply he said, “Good. Come on then you two.”

Confused and wary, you stood and followed them out of the medbay. When you reached what you assumed must be The Flash’s headquarters you let out a breath “So this is where the magic happens,” you said looking around. Your eyes landed on a man leaning forward over a spread of computers and tablets. “So we’ve got a doctor, a speedster, and...who are you?” you asked with a smirk.

“Cisco Ramon. I’m the cute one,” he deadpanned.

You huffed out a laugh. “Yeah. Yeah, I can see that.” You saw him smile and felt the corners of your mouth turn up slightly at the sight. He looked nice that way. You gestured to the room around you, “You run this place?”

“Well I mean, I’m not one to brag or anything, but-”

“Cisco, dude,” The Flash interrupted. 

“Priorities,” said Dr. Snow. 

“Right,” he said. You grinned to yourself, amused at their conversation. 

“Right, so down to business,” The Flash began. He turned to you. “Who are you?”

You crossed your arms. You weren’t sure you should answer. Sure he was a superhero, one you even admired, but he was also unfamiliar, had seen you use your powers, knocked you out, and brought you here. 

“Okay how long have you had your powers, how do they work?”

You hesitated but decided since he’d already seen what you could do it wouldn’t hurt to tell them. “About four months. I don’t know how they work or how I got them,” you answered honestly. “Look, I really didn’t want to cause anyone harm earlier, I swear. I just… had something to take care of.”

“I believe you,” The Flash said.

Surprised you asked, “Wait, you do?”

“I saw you out there. You may be a thief but you weren’t trying to hurt anyone. Well except me.”

“Yeah sorry about that. You kind of got in the way. How’d you find me anyways?”

The Flash opened his mouth but was cut off by Cisco. You turned to look at him as he spoke, “That’s where my specially made trackers came in,” he beamed. “All Flash here had to do was grab your bare skin while he had the tracker in hand and transfer it to you, it’s small enough to slip under the skin without feeling it.”

You looked down at your wrist, all you saw was a small scratch you hadn’t noticed before. You looked back up at Cisco, “Beauty and brains,” you smirked again. 

“We thought you could create and manipulate fire, but you created ice, too. How?” The Flash asked. 

“I told you all I don’t know. Look not that this hasn’t been fun, but I think it’s time to call it quits and head home.”

“You mean the building you’ve been squatting in?” The Flash replied.

“Yeah, that one.”

“Why don’t you just tell us who you are. We can help you. Help you learn to control your powers better, find you a real place to stay”

“You’re one to talk, hiding behind a fancy suit and cowl,” you spit back. 

“You’re right,” The Flash said. Slowly he reached up and removed the part or his suit masking his face. “Hi. I’m Barry.”

 

“Wow. I didn’t think you’d actually do that,” you said stunned. “I guess fair’s fair, though. I’m Y/N” you said sticking your chin up. “And if we’re going for complete honesty here, there’s probably one more thing I should tell you.”

“Please don’t secretly be an evil speedster. We’ve had way too many of those,” Cisco groaned. 

“Um, no,” you said as you eyed the rest of the team. “I can do more than just manipulating fire and ice. I can control all four elements.”

You were expecting them to be scared, or at least wary of you after your admission. Instead, Cisco walked up to you with a huge grin on his face and said, “So you’re telling me we discovered the Avatar?! This is so dope! Can you really airbend?”

“I can control the air, yeah,” you said smiling back at him. “And the earth but that’s… tricky. And the most destructive. Usually. It’s easiest to control fire and water.”

“How did you create the icicles out of regular water? It looked like they were coming straight out of you. You didn’t even use your hands,” questioned Barry. 

You looked down. “Ah, that, I couldn’t always. It only started a couple months or so ago” you started before Dr. Snow cut in. 

“When I Had Y/N in the medbay I noticed your core temperature was… average. Usually, when someone has heat powers their body operates at a higher temperature, and with cold powers…” She held her palm up, mist starting to rise. Then you saw it. The icicle that had just formed in her hand. “We have a much lower body temperature.”

“You’re getting better at those, Caitlin,” Cisco told her with an almost proud smile. 

“Thanks,” she smiled warmly before turning back to you. “I think the fact that you can control both causes your temperature to balance out, and the more you gained control over your powers you were slowly able to fluctuate between a hot and cold core temp at will.” 

“And the colder she gets the more the water freezes,” Barry said nodding to himself. 

“All I know is that when I need to, I can let all the heat go. I can feel it leaving my body and the cold builds. Then I can freeze anything.” 

“Look,” said Barry. “You’re obviously powerful, and you’re not a bad person. So why break into that pawn shop?”

So we’re doing this, you thought. You let out a sigh and said, “It’s simple really. The jerk who runs the shop tried to scam me, and I needed my ring back,” You told them holding up the ring hanging around your neck on a long, silver chain. “It was my mom’s and it’s all I have left, so I wasn’t just gonna let him keep it when he jacked up the price I sold it to him for.” 

Barry nodded again, then called Cisco and Caitlin over to him. You could only make out a few words, barely, when they all turned back to you. 

“How would you feel about joining the team?” Barry asked. “Be a part of something where you could actually help people. We could train you, help you learn more about your abilities, and eventually, you could come out into the field.”

You stared at them. “You’re serious?” They stared back, Barry giving you a nod, Caitlin and Cisco both smiling at you. You ran through it all in your head quickly. “I - uh… okay,” you said. Then again, more sure of your answer, “Okay. I’ll do it.”

“Yes,” Cisco exclaimed with a small fist pump. “Girl, your suit is gonna look AMAZING!”

Caitlin just smiled and shook her head at him, then walked up to you and lightly touched your arm, her hands really were freezing, and said, “Welcome to the team, Y/N.”

“Okay well, first things first. You can’t keep staying in that old abandoned building. We need to find you a real place to live,” Barry said. 

“Y/N could stay with me,” Cisco chimed in. You looked at him trying to figure out if he was serious or just trying to flirt with you. You figured it was probably both. “I mean my place is kind of small, and a little messy, but it’s decent. Plus it’s close to the STAR Labs. And I have a pretty comfortable bed. Not that I’m trying to get you into bed, even though you are gorgeous, but I have a pullout couch too and feel free to tell me to shut up I know I’m rambling now and-”

“Cisco,” you said to get his attention as Barry and Caitlin looked on amused. “You gonna show me your place or just stand there babbling. It’s late and I’m tired, let’s go.” 

He stood there shocked for a moment before stuttering out, “I - uh...Yeah. Let’s go.” You caught him throw a thumbs up towards his friends and smiled to yourself. This was going to be interesting.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has a slightly drunk Cisco and Reader followed by cuddling. I'm hoping to introduce Iris and Wally in the next chapter.

The car ride to Cisco’s apartment was short and mostly consisted of him asking questions. Where are you from? Why were you in that building? What do you want for dinner? Wait, you’re not allergic to anything are you? 

When Cisco pulled into his parking spot you hopped out, heading to the front door of the apartment complex. Cisco had just turned the engine off and gotten out of the car when he said, “It’s locked, hold on I’ll get it for you.” By the time he reached the door you had already picked the lock and held it open for him.

“Gentlemen first,” You said with a cocky smile. 

“Did you just - how did you? Damn, woman. You are full of surprises, aren’t you?”

“Just a few. Come on,” you beckoned.

The elevator ride up to the fourth floor was silent but you didn’t mind, you appreciated the quiet after the crazy night you’d had, and you suppressed a small smile when Cisco slowly shuffled closer to you until your shoulders were grazing each other. 

When you stepped out Cisco led you to his apartment. “You wanna do the honors or should I just use my key?” he smirked. 

“This one’s all you.”

“Sorry about the mess,” Cisco said as he opened the door. He was right about the place being on the small side, but messy you were used to. 

“Nah, it’s just chaotically organized,” you told him as you plopped down on his couch.

“Make yourself at home,” he joked. You looked up at him and flashed a quick smile as you toyed with the ring around your neck. “So that was your mom’s?”

You tucked in the chain you hadn’t realized you’d been touching. “Yeah.”

“What was she like?” You thought for a moment. Cisco was nice and cute, but he was still practically a stranger. “It’s okay, you don’t have to talk about it. Believe me, I get not wanting to talk about family.”

A subject change was definitely needed now. “So,” you said, a bit too perky even to your own ears. “What’s for dinner? Takeout, or were you serious about cooking?”

A smile spread on Cisco’s face. “Oh, I’m cooking alright,” he said turning to enter the kitchen. “How do you feel about spicy food?”

“Love it.”

“I have a craving for empanadas, and my abuela’s recipe definitely has some kick to it. Want something to drink while I get everything ready? I’ve got water, some pop-"

“Got anything stronger?” 

He smiled again, something you felt yourself quickly getting addicted to seeing. “Well.... I may have something.” He reached up to the top of his fridge, pulling down a bottle of gold liquid. “You like tequila,” he said pulling down a second, darker bottle, “Or rum?” He held both up and you smiled back at him, standing to cross the room. You grabbed the tequila, letting your fingers brush against his. 

“You know you’re not getting out of drinking this with me, right?” 

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Good. Because we’re definitely gonna use that foosball table tonight and I can’t be the only tipsy one. That’s cheating,” you said matter of factly. 

You found the shot glasses and filled them while Cisco washed his hands and pulled out the ingredients for the empanadas. “Cheers,” you said holding out one of the shots for Cisco.

“Cheers,” he replied, clinking glasses with you. 

Four shots later you were definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol, and if Cisco’s giggling was any indication, so was he. “Those almost done?” you asked standing on your tiptoes to peek over his shoulder. 

“Chill, woman,” he laughed. “They’ll be done in like fifteen minutes.”

“That’s enough time to start a game of foosball.”

“You know you’re gonna get your ass kicked, right?” 

“We’ll see about that.”

By the time the buzzer went off in the kitchen, you had already lost two matches. “Okay so I may have overestimated my foosball skills,” you giggled. Cisco laughed with you as he set the table. Dinner was amazing, who knew this dude could really cook, and the conversation stayed fun and light throughout the night. 

 

“Okay that’s the third time you’ve yawned in like five minutes,” Cisco pointed out. “Let’s get you to bed.”

“That’s probably for the best,” you agreed standing up from the table and feeling a rush to your head. “Whoa,” you laughed out. “Yeah, it’s time for bed. You said this pulls out, right?” you asked gesturing to the couch.

“Uh-uh. I mean yeah, it does, but I’m not gonna make you sleep on that old thing. You can take my room, I’ll sleep out here for the night.”

“Cisco, I’ve been squatting in abandoned buildings around Central City for the past year, I can handle a pullout couch.”

“Okay valid point, but it’s the principle.”

You laughed. “And what principle is that exactly? The one where I’m some sort of damsel in distress who needs saving from the terrifying couch?” you mocked. “You know, the easiest solution is we just both sleep in your bed,” you stated.

Cisco froze for a moment before asking, “You’d be okay with that?”

“I assume your bed is big enough for two people.”

“Well, yeah, but… I really don’t mind sleeping on the pullout, Y/N.”

“Don’t be stupid, Cisco,” you said swatting his arm playfully as you passed by him, walking towards the bedroom. “It cool if I borrow something to wear? All my clothes are back home, we’ll have to get them in the morning before someone steals ‘em.”

“Um, yeah, sure. Wear whatever you want. I’ll just… I’ll just clean this stuff up while you get changed.”

When Cisco knocked on the door ten minutes later you told him to come in. When he opened the door he found you sitting cross legged on the bed wearing a pair of his boxers and a t-shirt with a diagram of the Millennium Falcon. “Wow, you look… nice. I mean you looked nice before but-”

“Cisco, you’re doing it again,” you cut him off.

He closed his mouth and gestured to the whole of his room,”So, you like?”

You looked around again, “I definitely dig the Young Frankenstein posters,” you said nodding your approval. He grinned back at you, “It is a classic.”

“True. You getting in or what? I’m ready to pass out.” You climbed under the covers and patted the open space next to you. Cisco pulled off his button down and pants until he was in his boxers and t-shirt as well and got in, shuffling towards the edge of the bed. “You’re gonna fall off, Cisco.”

“Didn’t wanna crowd you,” he replied. 

“I don’t mind if it means I don’t have to pick you up off the floor in the morning.”

Cisco laughed under his breath and scooted closer to you, still being careful not to touch you. You thought about reaching out, but decided against it. Too personal, he'd probably just pull away. Instead you turned to your side. After a few moments of silence had passed you spoke softly, “My mom was selfish. And definitely not the type to come to games or put my artwork up on the fridge. She never should have had a kid in the first place. But she tried, in her own distant way. My dad died when I was a baby, maybe she was different before then. When she passed away, the state took all her things, but I managed to hang onto her ring.” 

You waited for Cisco to say something, anything, already regretting all the tequila and all the spontaneous sharing. Then, Cisco pressed a hand to your shoulder and gave a light squeeze. “Thanks for trusting me with that, Y/N.” Before you knew what you were doing, you reached over your shoulder to rest your hand over Cisco’s. You stayed like that for a while, until you drifted off to sleep and your hand fell to your side, Cisco curled up behind you.


	3. Chapter 3

You woke up slightly hungover and very confused, blinking slowly and trying to take in your surroundings. You sat up with your head in your hands, just then you heard a door open and a man’s voice. Instinctively you sent a strong gust of air towards the direction of the doorway and knocked the intruder off his feet. Getting up quickly you leaned over the figure on the floor. Cisco. Crap. 

“Sorry, I didn’t know who you were,” you said as you rushed to help him up off his bedroom floor.

“I was gonna tell you breakfast is ready if you’re hungry, but now I don’t know if you deserve it,” he said with a small huff as he got to his feet, failing to hide the small smile that threatened to spread across his face.

You grinned at him and crossed your arms, “Now really, I don’t think that attitude is necessary Cisco.” 

“So I guess that settles the whole airbending question,” he said as he let himself break out into an excited smile. 

“For the love of- Weren’t you already a teenager when that show came out?”

“Quality television has no age limit, Aang.” 

You laughed along with him at his joke. “And who does that make you?”

“Appa, probably with my luck.”

You looked at him, squinting. “Nah, I’m getting Katara from you.”

“How do you figure that?”

“Loyal, caring, smart, strong. Great hair.” He laughed at that. “You’re Katara, for sure,” you said with finality. 

Cisco smiled at his feet before lifting his gaze to you. “You got all that from one night and too much tequila?” he joked.

You shrugged and stepped around him to go to the kitchen. “Do you always cook like this?” you asked when you saw the array of pancakes, french toast, and waffles.

“Well I wasn’t sure which you preferred, so I went to the store to pick up some extra ingredients and just made it all.” 

“You didn’t have to do that, Cisco.” To be honest you were a bit overwhelmed by the kindness he had shown you so far. “Really.”

“Yeah,” he said with a shy smile. “But I wanted to.” When you just continued to stare at him he added, “Really it’s no big deal. Don’t overthink it, Y/N.”

“Overthinking is kind of my specialty,” you told him. Still, you sat down and helped yourself to a little bit of everything. 

 

You arrived at STAR Labs later than the rest of the team, but they didn’t have to drive to the other side of the city to get a duffel bag of clothes and then back to Cisco’s to shower and change. When the two of you walked in you were surprised to see a man and woman you didn’t know talking over coffee. You stopped walking, grabbing Cisco by the arm to stop him. “Who’re they?” you nodded towards the unfamiliar faces. 

Cisco looked over in the direction you’d nodded and said, ”Who, Wally and Iris? They’re with us, don’t worry. You can trust them. Come on” He started walking again and you followed after him. Stopping in front of the two, Cisco said, “Guys, this is Y/N.”

The girl, Iris, looked at you and smiled warmly, “Hey, Bar told me about you. How’re you adjusting to the whole “Team Flash” thing?”

You found yourself smiling back at her genuinely and shrugged, ”It’s weird, but it could be worse.”

“Trust me, it’ll only get weirder,” commented Wally. Iris slapped him on the chest and turned back to you.

“Want a coffee? There’s plenty. We just made a run to Jitters,” she offered. 

You gladly accepted and asked, “So what do you two do here?”

“I’m a reporter. And my brother here-”

“I’m Kid Flash!” Wally burst out with a huge grin on his face. Iris rolled her eyes but smiled fondly at her brother. 

“Yeah and he never shuts up about it.”

“What, I’m a superhero. Gotta represent,” Wally said, still smiling. 

Cisco shook his head and huffed out a laugh where he stood beside you and put a hand on your arm to get your attention. “Come on,” he said. “We gotta see Barry and Cait.” 

“It was nice meeting you, Y/N,” Iris told you and you smiled at her and waved goodbye as Cisco pulled you away. 

“I like her,” you said to Cisco.

“Yeah, Iris is great. We probably couldn’t do what we do here without her to keep everyone grounded. Especially Barry.”

“So they’re together?” you asked. 

“Yeah they are, finally,” he said. You reached the medbay where Barry and Caitlin were waiting for you. 

“So,” you said. “What’s the plan here?”

Caitlin answered, “First I need to run some tests on you. Then you start training.”

“With you or with Barry?” you asked.

“With Vibe,” Barry said. 

“And who is that?”

“You didn’t tell her?” Caitlin questioned Cisco. “I texted you last night to tell you the plan for the day.”

Cisco put his hands in front of his chest defensively. “Hey, I was kind of busy last night, calm down.” He turned to you and reached his hand out, “I’m Vibe. Pleased to meet you.”

“So he runs fast, she makes ice, and you...what?”

He dropped his hand. “It’s kind of cool actually, I can tap into the natural frequencies of the multiverse and manipulate them to open breaches to other worlds. And if I vibrate at the right frequency I can send out blasts of energy.”

“Other worlds?” you repeated.

“We can get into that later, right now I need to run those tests,” Caitlin said. “Boys, you can leave now.” She shooed them out of the room. 

 

When Caitlin finally said she was done for the day, you quickly grabbed your jacket and headed back to the cortex. She was nice, but if she stuck one more needle in your skin you were ready to riot. 

You caught Cisco’s eyes and approached him. You looked him up and down, he looked damn good in that suit. It must have been custom fitted to him and the goggles on top of his head were a nice touch. “So, Vibe, we doing this thing or what? I hope you’re ready to lose,” you challenged playfully. 

“I think you’re forgetting who the reigning foosball champion is. This won’t be any different,” Cisco replied with a cocky smile.

“Uh-huh, sure. What are the rules here?”

“Well, no killing is a good place to start. And according to Caitlin’s several texts, you’re only supposed to focus on one element today: Earth.”

Your smile dropped slightly. “I told you guys, earth is tricky to control.”

“That’s why we’re training.”

“Where are we even gonna go? Unless I’m expected to just split open the ground under STAR Labs.”

“Can you do that? Nevermind, we’ll find out in a minute. You ready to go?” he asked holding a hand out to you.

You took it without thinking. He gave a small squeeze and you realized you were just holding hands in the middle of the cortex. “Again, where are we going?”

“Patience, young padawan. You’ll see,” he said with a cheeky grin. He pulled his goggles off the top off his head and put them on. Then he held out his free hand and you watched as blue and white swirled together, spilling out of his fist and creating a larger portal. You could practically feel the energy ebbing out of him as he opened what you remembered he’d called a breach. “Ready?” he asked you.

“As I’ll ever be.” You hoped you weren’t making a mistake in trusting him so much as he pulled you into the breach with him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a very short chapter which took a bit of an angsty turn, but I promise it'll all be resolved soon:)

You stumbled out onto the ground, Cisco grabbing your waist to steady you. “I’m good,” you said a moment later when you looked to him and he was still holding onto you.

He pulled away as if he had just noticed how close he was to you. “Right, sorry.” 

“Where the hell are we?”

“Earth-32. The population was completely wiped out about a decade ago, so no one around to get hurt in the crossfire or damage to pay for.”

“Wiped out? Is it safe to be here?”

“Totally,” he said a bit too quickly. “Well for a few hours, and that’s all we need for today.”

“Right. Let’s get down to business,” Cisco opened his mouth to say something but you cut him off, “And don’t you dare start singing Cisco I swear-”

“Aww, you’re no fun. Why not?” Cisco said feigning a pout. 

“Because if you start singing, I’ll start singing, and then no work will get done at all.”

“We’ll just have to jam another time. You ready? I’ll even let you get the first hit in.”

“No one lets me do anything.” You reached out mentally until you locked onto a large rock. You held your hands out in front of you and focused all your energy on lifting it. You watched as it wobbled slightly then stilled. You pushed again, harder this time. Come on, you thought. Just then you felt something give and the rock lifted up to hover a foot above the ground. As soon as you had it in the air, you sent it shooting forward towards Cisco’s leg.

He apparently had quick reflexes, though, as he sent a blast aimed at the speeding rock and shattered it to pieces that crumbled to the ground. “Gonna have to try harder than that,” he teased, a smug look on his face.

You sent three smaller rocks his way, one after the other. Cisco blasted the first two and ducked to avoid the third. “Today’s really not your day, is it?” Cisco called out. You smirked as his smile fell and he looked down in front of him where a wall of stone was rising up. You had already created a wall behind him when he was distracted with the smaller rocks, and the sides were quickly growing. Before he knew it he was trapped.

“Not cool, Y/N. I told you last night I’m claustrophobic,” he shouted from his new enclosure. You’d remembered, and it had come in handy. 

You shouted back, “Hey the only rule you gave me was don’t kill you. That kind of leaves a lot to work with.”

A few seconds later the wall you’d made began to shake, then it burst apart. Before the dust had even settled Cisco sent a blast your way, but he wasn’t the only one with quick reflexes. This time as you built a wall in front of you to shield yourself the ground moved easier under your influence. You could get used to this, you thought as you sent another rock Cisco’s way. When you looked around your wall, though, all you saw was a quickly closing breach where Cisco had been standing. Panic rose up in you. No. He had left you alone on this strange, deserted earth. Maybe if you ran you could make it into the breach before it closed and find your way back home. 

Then, you heard the air crackle and split apart behind you and turned in time to see Cisco jumping out of a breach and sending a blast that vibrated through you, knocking you onto the ground. You stood shakily and breathed out, “That… was weird.” Once you regained your footing, anger swelled inside of you. You took a step towards Cisco and punched him in the jaw as hard as you could. 

“Ah- What the hell, Y/N?!” Cisco stumbled backward. While he was off balance you sent a ball of air at him that landed in his gut and knocked him to the ground. “Hey what happened to ‘earth only’ that was definitely one of the rules,” he gasped out, taking off his goggles. You knelt in front of him and waited for him to look up at you. 

“I thought you left me here, asshole.” 

Realization spread across Cisco’s face. “Look, Y/N, I didn’t mea-”

“It doesn’t matter. I’m done for today. Take me back to our earth.” You stood and turned away from him. You listened as he scrambled back up to his feet. You felt him grab your hand and yanked away from him. 

He sighed. “I have to have contact with you so you don’t get lost on the way back. Listen, I really am sorry. If I’d known you’d think I’d left you I never would have-”

“Let’s go,” you interrupted again, grabbing his shoulder and staring ahead. Out of the corner of your eyes you could see him open and close his mouth. He must have decided it was no use trying to talk to you because he faced forward and opened another breach.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's more drinking in this chapter and some angst as well.

“Okay, what is going on with you two?” asked Caitlin. 

“What do you mean?” you asked turning back to her. You had been talking about using your mutual ice powers, but Caitlin apparently had a different topic in mind.

“Until now you and Cisco were all flirting and jokes. Now he looks like a kicked puppy and you, you’re clearly pissed about something.” 

“Nothing happened. Everything’s fine,” you said cooly. 

“Alright, I’m gonna ignore the fact you just lied to my face. You can talk to me if you need to, you know,” she offered with a small smile. Great, now you felt guilty. 

“I don’t need to talk about it. Thank you, though. Really,” you said smiling back at her as warmly as you could manage at the moment. 

“It’s just, Cisco is my best friend. If he did something to upset you I’m sure it was an accident, Y/N.”

“I said I don’t need to talk. And I don’t want to either so drop it, okay,” you snapped. You winced at how harsh that sounded, but Caitlin only nodded.

“Alright. I won’t push anymore.” 

She started to turn away but you said, “Wait. I’m sorry, Caitlin. That was unnecessarily bitchy.”

She smiled at you. “Trust me, when I was first learning to use my powers I said, and did, plenty of things I wish I could take back. It’s no problem,” she said before heading out of the cortex. Mending things with Caitlin had been easy enough, but now you were alone in the room with Cisco. 

He looked up at you from the row of computers he was sitting at. You could practically see him contemplating whether he should try to say something again. Before he could make a decision, you left the cortex. You reached the main exit and kept walking.

*

You could have gone anywhere, but you found yourself walking back to Cisco’s apartment. When you arrived you pulled your lock pick set out of your back pocket and let yourself in. It was odd being in here without Cisco. Still, you took off your leather jacket and draped it over the couch before sitting down. Now what?

Rum, you thought. There was still a nearly full bottle of rum on top of the refrigerator. You checked the clock, 3:48pm. Good enough for you. You stood abruptly and walked into the kitchen to grab the bottle, forgoing a shot glass and opting instead to drink straight from the bottle. You made a face after your first gulp, this definitely didn’t go down as smooth as the tequila had. You thought about grabbing something to mix it with but decided you were in the mood to deal with the burn. 

You took another swallow and walked into the bedroom, bottle in hand. Another gulp and you were growing accustomed to the taste. “He didn’t even think,” you muttered to yourself. “It never even occurred to him,” you spat out, growing angrier by the second. This was good you thought, pressing the bottle to your lips again. As long as you stayed angry at him you didn’t have to think about how scared you had been. Or how disappointed in yourself you were for letting some guy make you trust him so easily. You never should have gone in the first place, none of this would have happened. You took another drink. 

*

At some point you must have fallen asleep, because the morning sun woke you the next day. You pushed the covers off of you and stood up to go to the bathroom to brush your teeth, your mouth dry and tasting like liquor. When you left the bedroom, though, the first thing you saw was Cisco in the kitchen, standing over a frying pan. 

“Hey,” he said looking over at you. “Fried egg sandwich and extra bacon, my go to when I’m hungover. Which I assume you are since you drank almost an entire bottle of rum. That stuff was 80 proof, I’m surprised you’re even standing right now.” He sounded genuinely impressed. 

“Didn’t hear you come in last night,” you said bitterly.

“I stayed late in my workshop. When I got home, you were here, and passed out on top of my bed.”

So he was the one to tuck you in under the covers last night. You looked anywhere but at Cisco, remembering your anger. Your eyes fell on the couch. The bed had been pulled out and there was a blanket hanging off onto the floor. 

“You slept out here,” you stated.

Cisco followed your gaze to the pullout. “Yeah,” he confirmed. “Didn’t think you’d really feel the same about sharing after yesterday.”

“It’s your bed. I can find somewhere else to stay, I don’t even know why I came back here-”

“No,” Cisco said, a bit too loudly, too suddenly. Your head ached and you stared at him in shock.

“No?” you repeated back to him, incredulous. “Since when do you decide where I live?”

“I just mean… you don’t have to go if you don’t want to. I know I screwed up and I’m really sorry, Y/N. You can stay here, though. If you choose to.”

Every second you stood there looking at him you could feel your anger slipping away. You wanted to let it, so you sat at the table and pulled out the chair next to you. “Well are you just gonna stand there or are we gonna eat?” you asked when Cisco just stared between you and the open chair. 

A smile spread across his face and he answered, “Yeah. Yeah that sounds great.” 

*

“You know,” Cisco said as he cleared away the dishes from breakfast. “Today’s actually my day off.”

“Didn’t know we got days off from crime fighting,” you joked, walking out of the bathroom having finally gotten the taste of rum out of you mouth.

“Well, not all of us. Wally is out patrolling with Barry and Iris is at STAR Labs monitoring them.” 

“So it’s just you and Caitlin,” you nodded.

“Please, that girl’s too much of a workaholic to actually stay home on her day off. She’s probably in the lab right now working on something.”

“So just you, then.”

“And you,” Cisco replied. 

You smiled. “And me. So what’s your plan for the day?”

“Well, now that you don’t totally hate my guts, I was thinking maybe we could do something together. Y’know, watch a movie or go out somewhere nice.”

“Cisco Ramon, are you asking me out on a date?” you said through a smile.

“Is that really such a surprise? So what do you say, wanna let me make you the luckiest girl in the multiverse? Speak up now, cause this,” he said gesturing to himself, “is the whole package.”

“No.”

Cisco faltered, “Oh. Oh okay, well that’s totally coo-”

“I’m gonna take you out,” you told him. You watched as shock turned to confusion turned to joy on Cisco’s face. 

“Oh, word?”

“Forreal,” you said. “Look, I punched you in the face, which I’m sorry about, by the way. The least I can do is buy you a drink,” you explained.

“Well I accept. But I think maybe we should stick to coffee. You’ve gone through more liquor these past few days than should be humanly possible.”

You laughed at that, Cisco smiling at you as you nodded your agreement. “Okay, coffee it is.”


	6. Chapter 6

Cisco went to find a table while you paid for your drinks. You left the line and searched the room for your date, eyes landing on Cisco where he sat in the far back. He looked up as if he had felt your eyes on him and waved you over with a smile. 

You sat across from him and handed him his drink. “I can’t believe you made me ask for twelve sugars. That barista looked at me like I was crazy,” you commented. 

“What can I say, I have a sweet tooth,” Cisco shrugged.

You snorted. “Yeah, I found your stash the first night I stayed with you. Honestly, you have an obscene amount of Twizzlers, Cisco.”

“You snooped?’’ he said, pretending to be insulted. 

“Only a little, and not on purpose. I was looking for pajamas and found a bag full of candy,” you explained. “Who keeps food in their underwear drawer anyway?”

“Geniuses,” Cisco said with a straight face before you both burst out into laughter. You took a sip of your own drink. “Well, what did you get?”

“Small caramel latte, extra whipped cream,” you told him. He gave you a look.

“And that’s not sweet?” he teased. You stuck your tongue out at Cisco and he rolled his eyes. “So,” he said. “We’re on a date.”

“Observant.” 

“And when we finish these coffees, the date will be over.”

“Are you going somewhere with this?”

“What I’m saying is, we could technically go on a second date. Y’know, like today.”

“Two dates. In one day?” you asked.

“Way I see it, I owe you now for taking me out. So next one is my treat.” When you looked at him skeptically he added, “Come on, I told you I wanted to take you some place nice. I’m a man of my word.”

“You trying to one up me, Ramon?” you asked with a small smile. 

“Of course, I’m competitive like that. For real though, what do you say?”

“I say yes. Just let me throw out this cup,” you said reaching for your empty coffee and moving to get up.

“Nah I got it, babe.” Your eyes widened at the term and Cisco froze. “Uh- I mean… my bad.”

“It’s fine,” you told him reaching out to cover his hand with yours. “I like it.” Instinctively Cisco turned his palm up to hold your hand and lightly rubbed his thumb over your skin, smiling. “You gonna throw these out?” you asked after a few moments had passed. He pulled his hand away and stood, and you immediately missed the contact. 

*

You’d been in the car fifteen minutes when you asked again, “Where are we going?”

Cisco clicked his tongue at you. “I told you, Y/N, it’s a surprise.” He looked over at you out of the corner of his eyes and laughed softly when he saw you cross your arms in front of you and pout. “It’s a good surprise, I promise,” Cisco assured you.

“Well if we’re gonna be in this car for God knows how long can you at least put on some music or something?”

Cisco smiled, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He reached for his phone and plugged it into the aux, scrolling for a moment before declaring, “Got it!” He looked at you grinning wide, “You ready?”

“Just put on your music, Cisco.”

He pressed play and- oh he had to be kidding. Cisco looked ahead at the road as the sound of drums swelled, still smiling. “LET’S GET DOWN TO BUSINESS...TO DEFEAT...THE HUNS!!!” he began. “Did they send me daughters. When I asked..for sons- come on Y/N! I’m not singing this by myself.”

“No way,” you told him shaking your head, a smile quickly spreading across your face. 

“Come on this is our jam session,” Cisco pleaded. “You’ve got to sing along.”

“Mister I’ll… Make a man… out of you,” you began to sing quietly. 

By the end of the number you were both belting the song as loud as you could. When it finished you and Cisco had been reduced to a fit of laughter that left your stomachs hurting. 

*

“We’re here,” Cisco said, pulling into the parking lot. 

You got out of the car and faced the front of the building and read the sign, “Central City Aquarium. You know when you said you wanted to go somewhere nice I thought you meant we’d get dinner later.”

“Trust me, you’re gonna love this,” Cisco assured you. He reached his hand out to you and you locked your fingers with his before you both started walking towards the entrance. 

The two of you walked hand in hand to the front desk where a woman greeted you with a smile. “Hey, Cisco,” she said. 

“Hey yourself Luna. Everything good to go?” he asked conspiratorially.

She smiled at you then back to Cisco, “Yeah you’re good. You two have fun,” she said with a wink.

“What was that all about?” you asked as you walked through the main hall to head to the first exhibit. 

“My cousin’s girlfriend runs the place. I knew today was their slow day so I uh, I may have asked her to clear the place out so we could be alone.”

“You did?” you asked stopping in your tracks. Cisco turned back to you and shrugged, sending you a soft smile. “You didn’t have to- wait, when did you even have time to set this up? We’ve been together all day.”

“I called her while you were in line at Jitters,” he said as if the answer were obvious. “Hey, I can see you doing the overthinking thing again. Don’t. Just come with me and try to enjoy yourself for a change.” He extended his hand to you and smiled when you took it, giving your hand a squeeze.

You entered through the double doors to the aquarium and turned to look at the animals swimming by. They looked so peaceful and content.

“Hold on,” Cisco said. He jogged off to inspect the panel next to the door. You were about to ask what he was doing when the lights switched off, sending you into semi-darkness. The blue glow of the aquarium lights the only thing left to illuminate the room. 

“Cisco?” you whispered.

“”Here,” he called back, walking to join you at your side again. “Now look up,” he told you pointing his finger upwards.

You did as you were told, your mouth dropping open slightly in wonder when you saw where he was pointing. The aquarium stretched out above you, an enormous sting ray floating across the sky. 

“Pretty cool, right?”

“This is better than cool, Cisco. It’s lovely. It’s- It’s perfect,” you told him, meaning every word. 

“Glad you like it,” he said smiling down at you. “Come on, there’s more this way.” He lead you deeper into the exhibit. 

*

An hour later and you’d walked through the whole aquarium. “How do you feel about lunch?” Cisco asked. 

“Like in general or as the next destination on this date train?”

“The second one,” Cisco laughed. “Unless you have something better to do?”

“As a matter of fact, there is something,” you said turning to face Cisco.

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” you said shifting slightly closer. “You see there’s this guy. He’s real sweet, easy on the eyes, and funny too.”

“Sounds like a catch,” Cisco said inching towards you.

“He is. And the thing is, I’ve really been meaning to kiss him,” you declared. 

Cisco swallowed. “What’s stopping you?”

“Nothing,” you breathed, letting your eyes flutter shut as Cisco moved to close the distance between you and-

A loud beeping sound startled you apart before your lips could touch. “Shit,” Cisco muttered under his breath as he dug into his pocket to grab his phone. “It’s Iris. There’s a situation with a meta, all hands on deck. I guess the date train is making a detour,” he said apologetically. 

“Right. Let’s go.”


	7. Chapter 7

Cisco strolled into the cortex, now changed into his Vibe suit to join Caitlin where she waited for him, already donning the blue leather of Killer Frost. “You ready, Cait?” Cisco asked as he started to open a breach. 

“I’m coming with you guys,” you stated as you walked up to them. 

“Y/N, no. It’s too dangerous, you need more training,” Caitlin told you gently.

“She’s right,” Cisco said. 

“So you two can risk your lives but I can’t?” you argued.

“We’ve done this before,” Caitlin said.

“Plus you said one of these metas was pyrokinetic,” you plowed on. “In case you all forgot I can control water. You could use me out there.”

“And that’s exactly why Caitlin’s coming into the field,” Cisco argued right back. Then softer, “We can look out for each other.” Caitlin nodded her agreement. “We’ll be okay, Y/N. I promise. Just stay here with Iris,” he pleaded, motioning over to where Iris sat giving directions to Barry and Wally. “Okay?”

You still didn’t like it but found yourself nodding anyways. Cisco had two speedsters and an ice queen on his side, plus he could handle himself. He’d be alright. You sat next to Iris behind the monitors and she gave you a reassuring smile before turning back to her work. The pair leaped through the breach and you saw on the screen where they came out in the street. 

“Frost!” Barry called out when he saw Caitlin and Cisco. “A little help here.”

Caitlin turned to see the meta, entire body engulfed in flames and shooting a stream of fire towards Barry as he walked closer, slowly backing Barry in. “On it,’ she responded and sent a walkway of ice under the meta’s feet, causing him to lose his balance and fall. His flames flickering out as Caitlin shrouded him in a cloud of cold air. The meta tried to stand, but Barry knocked him down with one punch. “Nice hit, Flash.”

“I had help,” he smiled. 

Meanwhile, Wally and Cisco were preoccupied with the second meta, who sent a car hurling towards Wally. He sped out of the way and Cisco sent a blast aimed directly at the meta, sending him falling back. Barry joined Wally and Cisco, Caitlin not far behind.

“I’d give up now, if I were you,” Caitlin said. From the ground, the meta levitated a car door which had been ripped off its hinges and aimed it at Caitlin. “Vibe!” she shouted, Cisco was already locking onto the door’s frequency, though. It stilled in the air, caught in rings of blue, before dropping to the ground two feet in front of her. Before they knew what was happening, Cisco and Barry were swept off their feet by a large tree branch slamming into their backs and they went down, hard.

“Barry!” “Cisco!” you and Iris exclaimed at the same time from where you sat in the cortex watching.

The two got to their feet slowly. Cisco opening a breach and calling out, “Kid Flash, you’re gonna wanna get a running start!” before shooting out a blast that pushed the meta through the breach. Wally sped down the street and turned, running back towards the newly opened breach the meta was stumbling out of and punched him at superspeed. The meta slumped down, unconscious. Caitlin and Wally cuffed the two passed out metas and dragged them over to the nearby police car that had just pulled up on the scene. 

*

Barry and Wally sped into the cortex, shortly followed by Cisco and Caitlin stepping out of a breach. You rushed over to Cisco and punched him on the arm. 

“Okay, ow. What was that for?” Cisco asked you rubbing the spot where you’d hit him.

“You could have gotten seriously hurt out there, Cisco!” you admonished. 

“As opposed to getting seriously hurt in here by you?”

“And you,” you spun on Caitlin. “You were supposed to be looking out for him,” you said a bit too accusingly. 

Caitlin opened her mouth to speak but Cisco cut her off, “It wasn’t her fault. We all did our part out there.”

“I know,” you conceded then lowered your voice so only Cisco could hear you, “Doesn’t mean I liked seeing you get hurt.”

He stroked your arm lightly, “Hey, I’m fine. Sore, yeah, but fine,” Cisco assured you. 

“That was Dad,” Iris said hanging up her phone. “He just finished bringing the metas into Singh.”

“Your dad knows about all this too?” you asked Iris. “Is there anyone who doesn’t know who you are, Barry?” you joked. 

“Well, Joe’s sort of my dad too,” Barry explained. “And he’s a cop, so..”

“It’s complicated,” said Wally.

“Apparently,” you commented. 

“You know what we need?” Cisco spoke up. “A night out.” When he received questioning looks from the team and a groan from Caitlin he carried on, “Come on we whooped ass today, well for the most part anyways. And when was the last time we all had a break? Plus Y/N’s here now! We gotta go out and celebrate. I’ll even buy the first round.”

“Cisco’s right,” Iris said. “I think a break is exactly what we need.”

“See, Iris that’s what I’m talking bout,” Cisco said excitedly holding his hand up for a high-five which Iris returned with a laugh. “What do you guys say?”

“If Iris and Cisco are going, then I guess so am I,” you said warming up to the idea of going out with the team. “It’ll be fun.”

“Yes!” Cisco said. “Two down, three to go.” 

“Well I’m always down to party,” Wally said with a smile.

“Barry, Cait. Don’t ruin this for me. Come on, I need this,” Cisco pleaded.

“Yeah Bar, like Y/N said, it’ll be fun,” Iris added. 

“Okay,” Barry sighed “Let’s do it.”

“Fine,” Caitlin said. “But only because you’re buying the first round. I’m gonna hold you to that, mister,” she said pointing to Cisco.

“Let’s get TURNT!” Cisco exclaimed with a huge grin spreading across his face. 

*

“Okay what about this one, Y/N?” Caitlin asked holding up a green dress with the shoulders cut out. 

“Not my color,” you answered, turning down the fifth dress in a row as Iris refilled your glasses with wine. When you mentioned you didn’t have anything club worthy in your duffel bag, Iris and Caitlin both immediately offered to lend you clothes and shoes for the night. You had all gathered in Caitlin’s apartment, Iris arriving late with several outfits from her own closet in tow. 

“Okay well, what is your color?” Iris asked.

“Black? I don’t know. I haven’t exactly had cause to dress up lately, you know living in abandoned buildings isn’t all that glamorous.”

“Alright, well what about this then?” Caitlin held up a dress from the pile Iris had brought, not missing a beat. It was black and form fitting with lace on the shoulders and an open back. When you reached out to touch it you felt that the material was soft and breathable. It looked comfortable enough. And it was definitely sexy.

“Ha! You like it!” Iris said excitedly. “Admit it.”

“I don’t hate it,” you told them. 

“You have to try it on,” Caitlin declared. “Go on,” she said thrusting the dress into your hands and shooing you off towards the bathroom. 

In the bathroom you searched the dress for a zipper before realizing it must be a pull over. You shed your jeans and STAR Labs sweatshirt and slipped it over your head, tugging it down carefully. You looked at yourself in the mirror and caught yourself smiling. It was a really nice dress. You fixed your hair where the dress had messed it up and returned to Caitlin’s bedroom where she and Iris were both still sipping their wine and talking. 

“So?” you asked nervously. The two women turned to you and beamed.

“You look amazing, Y/N!” Caitlin said with glee.

“Yeah, I don’t think I even look that good in that dress and it’s mine,” Iris said smiling at you. She clapped her hands together as if she had just gotten an idea. “You should keep it! No, I’m serious,” she said at your doubtful look. “It suits you. Besides I have plenty more at home.” 

“Thanks,” you said, truly meaning it. 

“Okay, now that we’re all dressed,” Caitlin said playfully, “Can we get this night over with?”

“The cab’s been downstairs for ten minutes,” Iris stated. “I thought Y/N was going to be easier to dress than she turned out to be.” You all laughed and headed down. 

*

You pulled up to the club the boys had told you to meet them at and the three of you spilled out of the cramped cab after Caitlin paid the driver. It took a minute, but eventually you found the boys standing at the bar, beers already in hand. 

“You didn’t wait for us?” Caitlin chided them. “I’m disappointed in all of you. And Cisco I thought we were having our first round together.”

“Oh please, Iris texted me thirty minutes ago to tell me you were halfway through a bottle of red,” Cisco responded. 

Caitlin looked at Iris feigning betrayal, to which Iris shrugged, “What, you never said our pre-cocktail cocktails were supposed to be a secret.” 

“So what are we all having?” asked Wally.

“Tequila,” you and Cisco proposed in unison. You looked at him and the two of you exchanged knowing smiles. 

“Tequila it is,” Iris said, waving over the bartender to order. 

Cisco paid for the first round, as promised, and counted down from three before yelling “Drink!” The team lifted their glasses and poured back the gold liquid. 

“Another!” Iris said as she clinked her empty shot glass back down on the bar. 

Three shots in Barry decided to get a table for the team. You all followed back, squeezing into the circular booth and talking over the music. You sat on the end and scooched closer to Iris when Cisco came back carrying a tray and sat next to you, setting the drinks on the table. As everyone talked loudly to each other, Cisco set a hand on your thigh and leaned in to whisper in your ear, “You look amazing.”

You smiled to yourself. “Well, you can thank Iris for the outfit,” you whispered back. 

“Oh, I am very, very grateful for this outfit,” Cisco said. Caitlin looked across to you, noticing your close proximity and smiled as if she had just figured something out. You avoided her gaze by taking a sip of your new drink. 

“Man, I never thought I’d say this, but being a speedster sucks sometimes,” Wally proclaimed. 

Barry laughed, “Yeah tell me about it. I haven’t gotten drunk in three years.”

“Babe, come dance with me,” Iris said to Barry. 

“Uh-uh, I don’t dance,” Barry responded shaking his head. 

“You’re no fun,” Iris said wrinkling her nose at him. “Y/N? What about you?” she asked hopefully.

“Ahh…”

“Come on!”

“...Okay,” you decided. “Let’s go.”

“Yes! Move it, Cisco,” Iris said. “Unless you wanna join us?”

“You kidding?” Cisco asked. “Of course!” 

The three of you exited the booth hand in hand and headed to the dance floor. 

“I’m coming with!” Wally shouted, scooching past Caitlin to follow. 

You let yourself move to the beat, laughing as Cisco jumped up and down, his hair flying wildly with each bounce and smiling fondly at Wally and Iris as he spun his sister around. You looked over to the table to see Barry and Caitlin coming towards you, Barry stepped in between Wally and Iris and took his girlfriend’s hand in his. With the whole team on the floor moving beside each other, smiles plastered on everyone’s faces, you couldn’t help but feel happy. When you caught Cisco’s eyes he held his hand out to you and you took it, letting yourself be twirled around the spot you stood before Cisco pulled you close. 

You pressed a hand to his chest, giggling and slightly dizzy. When your laughter subsided you looked up at Cisco. He continued to hold you close, swaying to the music and looking into your eyes. With these people, with Cisco, for the first time in a long time, you felt at home.


	8. Chapter 8

You waved bye to the couple as Barry held the door open for Iris. Wally had already sped home, and Caitlin called a cab for herself, wishing you both a good night as she dipped into the back seat. “So how’re we getting back to your apartment?” you asked turning to Cisco. 

“Well, I definitely can’t drive right now. We could call a cab. Or..”

“Or what?”

“It’s only like eight blocks. We could walk and save some money.”

“Walking it is.”

Four blocks in and you were seriously regretting letting the girls convince you to wear these heels. Five blocks and you were stopping, reaching down to pull at the ankle straps. “Um, Y/N, what’re you doing?” Cisco asked you clearly confused.

“These shoes,” you began. “They’re killing me,” you said stepping out of them. You stood back up, pushing your hair back with one hand, letting the shoes dangle from the other. “Okay, I’m ready,” you said taking a step forward.

“Oh no, no, no. You’re not walking barefoot through these streets, Y/N. You’ll cut up your feet," Cisco told you.

“I’ll be fine.”

“Nuh-uh. Get on,” Cisco ordered, squatting down in front of you. You looked at him and wondered whether he was actually serious. “Come on,” he said waving a hand behind his back. Apparently, he was very serious. “Unless you’d rather be carried princess style.”

You chuckled at that. You considered fighting him on it, you didn’t need to be carried like some damsel, it was only three more blocks, but you were just tipsy enough to decide the fight wasn’t worth it when Cisco was right there offering. You climbed onto his back and wrapped your hands around his neck, your shoes hanging from your hands over his chest. Once he secured your legs, he slowly rose up until he was standing again. 

“You good back there?”

“Yup,” you responded. 

Cisco resumed his walking. When you had reached the last block, he said, “Hold on tight,” and began to sprint towards the apartment complex, you laughing wildly from your spot on his back and squeezing your eyes shut against the wind. You were still laughing softly when he put you down to unlock the front doors. “You have fun?” he said with a sly smile.

“As a matter of fact, yes,” you said smiling back. “In fact, I’m thinking of forgoing walking altogether. From now on my only form of transportation will be piggy back rides,” you joked.

“Yeah, but only from me, right?” he asked holding the door open for you.

“Of course,” you answered, a sigh of relief leaving you when your aching feet hit the carpeted lobby floor. A man dressed in a janitor’s uniform stepped out of the elevator and headed toward the closet to the side. Your eyes moved between Cisco and the open elevator, “Race you,” you called out, already speeding towards the door.

“Cheater!” Cisco called behind you as he began running to catch up. You leaped into the elevator and pressed close, sticking your tongue out at Cisco as the doors shut just as he reached them. You laughed the whole way up. 

When the doors opened on Cisco’s floor you were surprised to see him there, leaning against the wall. “How did you get up the stairs that fast?” you asked.

Cisco smiled mischievously, “Who said I took the stairs?”

Realization struck you. “You used a breach?” Cisco shrugged. “Cheater!” you accused.

“You cheated first,” he said pushing off the wall and spinning to unlock his apartment door. 

“Whatever, I win by default because you used your powers,” you declared. 

“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” Cisco mocked as the two of you slipped into his place and he flicked the lights on. 

“Speaking of, I’m exhausted. And definitely ready for bed,” you told him.

“Me too. Having fun is tiring,” he huffed out. 

“Agreed.” You shrugged off your jacket and tossed it on the couch. “I need to change,” you said heading for the bedroom. 

Once you were in your tank top and a pair of Cisco’s boxers you called out to him, “You can come in now.” He opened the door, peeking his head around the corner before stepping in. 

“What is with you and stealing my boxers, woman?”

You shrugged, a slight blush coloring your cheeks, “They’re comfortable. Come here.” Cisco removed his jacket and jeans, pulling on a pair of sweats from his dresser. He jumped onto the bed, causing you to bounce up slightly. “Dork,” you laughed. 

“Yeah but you like it,” he said climbing under the covers. You did the same.

“Yeah, I do,” you admitted, turning on your side to face Cisco where he lay looking down at you, head propped up on his hand. “And I like you.”

“You know,” Cisco said quietly. “Before our date got interrupted, it seemed like something was about to happen. Something I would really, really like to happen.”

“Cisco,” you said just as softly.

“Yeah?”

“Kiss me.”

Cisco leaned down placing a warm kiss against your lips, deepening it when you reached a hand up to rest on his cheek. You kissed back, wrapping a leg over his hip. You moaned into his mouth when his hand came up to stroke your thigh, his nails lightly grazing your skin and sending a thrill through your entire body, and he took the opportunity to slide his tongue into your mouth, moving expertly. 

You stayed like that for you didn’t know how long until finally, you pulled away. “Goodnight, Cisco,” you whispered. 

He pressed a kiss to your forehead and intertwined your fingers between your bodies, “Goodnight, Y/N.” 

*

The next morning you woke up, fingers still locked with Cisco’s, the man himself breathing deeply beside you. You smiled at him and shifted so your other hand could stroke his hair out of his face. He really was beautiful. Carefully, you pulled your hand out of his and rose from the bed. You opened the door slowly, making sure you made no noise and headed to the bathroom to shower and change into your clothes. When you had finished brushing your teeth and fixing your hair in the small mirror, you searched the kitchen drawers for a notepad and scribbled out the words “Be back soon - Y/N.” You slipped out the front door silently. 

When you returned you struggled to balance the treats from Jitters and pick the lock to Cisco’s apartment at the same time. Before you could unlock it, the door swung open and a very groggy and confused looking Cisco greeted you. He took in your appearance, tray of coffee in one hand, lock pick in the other, and a bag of donuts hanging from your mouth. “Hi,” you mumbled around the bag. 

Cisco stared, a smile quickly forming over his tired features to light up his face. “I can make you a key, you know. You live here now, you don’t have to keep breaking in. In fact I’d actually prefer it if you didn’t,” he said reaching out to take the paper bag from your mouth. “That better?” 

“Thanks,” you said shaking your hair back and handing him his coffee. “Black, twelve sugars. Just like you like,” you said beaming at him. You came in and kicked the door closed behind you. 

“What’s the occasion?” Cisco asked setting everything down on the table. 

“I can’t just wanna do something nice for you after everything you’ve done for me?”

“I guess so. Thank you, Y/N.”

“No problem,” you said smiling at him from across the table. “Hand me a glazed.”

After you had both eaten and finished your coffees you asked, “So, what’s on the agenda for the day?”

“Training with Cait and then you’re on the monitors, with me,” Cisco informed you collecting the crumbs from the table in his hand.

“Alright. We should probably leave soon, then.”

“I’m kind of still in my pajamas, Y/N,” Cisco said gesturing to his t-shirt and sweatpants. “Give me a minute to get ready.”

“Right,” you responded. “Be quick!” you called as Cisco headed to the bathroom and turned on the shower. 

*

Training with Caitlin was interesting. Every fireball sent her way was met with an extinguishing rush of cold air, every icicle anticipated and dodged. She moved well for a doctor that spent most of her time in a lab coat and four inch heels. You hated to admit it, but she was giving you a run for your money. More than once you had been knocked down from slipping on her trails of ice, which seemed to have no effect on her ability to strut towards you and throw a snowball in your face, laughing at your shocked expression. 

Oh, it was on. You shot a larger snowball back at her as she was doubled over in laughter, landing on the back of her neck. Soon enough you were both giggling messes participating in a superpowered snowball fight. It was nice to see her let go and have fun without having to be convinced into it. 

Cisco came into the climate controlled training room you were using and received a snowball from each of you. “H-hey! What the- Not cool, guys!” His reaction only caused the two of you to laugh harder. 

“Sorry, Cisco,” Caitlin eventually said when she had collected herself. 

“Yeah, it was an accident,” you added, still smiling.

“An acci- Oh really? So you both just happened to slip and throw a snowball directly at me?” 

“Is the training session over already?” Caitlin asked him. 

“It ended 15 minutes ago, Elsa. You and Anna here just been playing the whole time or did you actually teach her anything?” 

“I’d say she learned a lot, actually,” Caitlin said in her serious voice. “She’s definitely improved her aim, anyways,” she said pointing to the wet patch on Cisco’s shirt and struggling to hold back a chuckle. You joined in, unable to retain your laughter.

“Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up you two. Y/N, you ready to go?”

“Yep. See ya, Caitlin,” you called over your shoulder as you followed Cisco out into the hall, failing to hide your smile. 

“You must think you’re so funny, huh,” Cisco said spinning you up against the wall once Caitlin was out of sight, carefully but firmly. 

“I think I’m hilarious,” you said, a rush running through you. He looked around quickly before turning back to you and kissing you, hard, leaving you gasping for air and aching for more. 

 

He pulled away from you slightly and said in a hushed voice, “Come on, we have work to do.” He gave you one last lingering kiss before backing away from you completely and walking down the hallway towards the cortex. You followed. 

*

During the next week you and Cisco fell into an easy routine. You woke up together, you trained together, you worked together(stealing kisses whenever you could), and at night, you went home together. One night as you cleared away the dishes, Cisco spoke up, “So there’s something I’ve kind of been putting off asking you, but I have a feeling tonight could be the night.”

You stopped what you were doing and looked at him, “Cisco…”

“Not that! Although I wouldn’t be opposed, but- Anyways,” he said now clearly flustered. “I was talking about a movie marathon,” he explained. “We could start off with a little romance or adventure, maybe The Princess Bride, then go into comedy and-”

You laughed softly. “A movie night sounds great, Cisco,” you said turning back to the dishes. “Just let me finish these up and we can set up on the couch.” 

You lay on the surprisingly comfortable couch cradling the bowl of popcorn as Cisco put in the vhs of Princess Bride. “You know they have this on Netflix, right?”

“It’s better this way.” Cisco joined you on the couch, lifting your legs as he sat down and placing them back over his own lap. “Ready?” He asked excitedly. He pressed play on the remote when you nodded. Cisco was delighted when he caught you mouthing along to the words, and quickly the two of you were reciting entire dialogues back and forth. 

You noticed his eyes drifting lower and lower, finally closing as his head sunk forward halfway through Young Frankenstein. He must be exhausted, you thought. He did so much for the team every day, most of it going unappreciated. You stretched behind you to turn off the lamp, accidentally startling Cisco awake with your movements. “Shh,” you said softly. “Go back to sleep.” Cisco did as he was told, first snuggling up closer to you. He sunk down to his side, slipping one arm under you and the other over to wrap around your waist and rested his head on your chest. You let your own head fall back against the pillow propped up behind you and stroked Cisco’s hair until his breathing evened out and you both fell asleep.


	9. Chapter 9

A knock on the door woke you in the morning. You glanced at the clock. Who the hell was knocking at 6:24 on a Saturday morning? You removed yourself from Cisco’s arms reluctantly and made your way to the door, opening it to find Barry waiting on the other side, rubbing a hand through his hair. “Oh, Y/N,” he said surprised. “Almost forgot you guys were roommates now.” You continued to stare at him from the partly opened doorway, growing increasingly irritated every second he didn’t explain why the hell he had woken you up from a perfectly good sleep. “Is Cisco in?” he asked, an excited grin starting to spread across his face. 

You debated telling Barry no and having him come back later. Cisco hardly ever slept in and he deserved the extra rest, you didn’t want to wake him. But if Barry had come all this way so early instead of just calling it must be important. “ ‘Sco!” you managed to call behind you, voice cracking slightly from having just woken up as you opened the door wider to let Barry come in.

“I’m up!” Cisco responded startled, bolting upright on the couch. He slowly came to his senses, looking around his apartment, eyes landing on you and Barry

“You have a visitor,” you stated. 

“Barry, man, I know I said drop by whenever but this is taking it a bit far, don’t you think?” Cisco said groggily. “What’s up?”

“”I did it!” Barry announced enthusiastically. “I asked Iris to marry me,” he said, smiling ear to ear.

Cisco stood up quickly and strode over to where Barry stood wrapping his arms around him in a tight hug. “Barry that’s amazing!” Then pulling away, still holding Barry’s arms in his hands, “Wait she did say yes, right?”

“Yes, she said yes,” Barry laughed. Cisco dragged him into another hug before letting go, a grin on his face to match Barry’s. 

“Congratulations,” you told Barry with a soft smile.

“Thanks, Y/N,” he said as you shared a quick hug. 

“So where is the future Mrs. West-Allen?” Cisco asked.

“Uh, in bed. I couldn’t sleep, I was too excited. And I had to tell the best man,” Barry said looking at Cisco.

“You mean…” Cisco trailed off. Barry nodded.

“Yeah bro, who else could I trust with the title,” he said tilting his head to the side.

“I’m, I’m honored, man. Thanks. And congrats.” Cisco shook his head to himself, “I can’t believe my kids are all grown up and getting hitched,” Barry laughed at that. “Well, sit down I’ll make breakfast,” Cisco declared.

“I’ll help,” you told him.

In the kitchen, Cisco and you moved around each other with ease. Cisco pulled out a mixing bowl for the pancakes, you cracked the eggs into it. You spun and opened the fridge, Cisco reached in to grab the package of bacon. While the food fried under Cisco’s watchful eye, you reached onto the counter where a half full container of cupcakes sat. You grabbed them and walked them to the table where Barry waited.

“I say this good news warrants some cupcakes. Barry?” you held the package open to him and he took one, voicing his thanks. You moved back to where Cisco stood at the stove and handed him one, “Here you are, kind sir,” you said in your snootiest voice.

“Well thank you, madam,” He replied in the same tone carefully plucking a cupcake out with one hand. You took one for yourself and set the container back on the counter. Cisco flipped the bacon, taking a large bite of cupcake. You laughed when you noticed the frosting stuck to the tip of his nose. 

“Uh, you got a little something there,” you said pointing to his face. “You going for a new look?”

“Very funny,” Cisco said swiping at the frosting with his finger and licking it off. “You know I think you’ve got a lil something too,” Cisco said squinting at your face. 

You reached up, “Where?”

Cisco used his finger to scoop up more frosting directly from his cupcake, setting the cupcake down on the counter. He dove and grabbed you around the waist with his clean hand, earning a squeal from you as you realized his plan. “Riiiight there!” he said wiping the frosting onto your own nose. You couldn’t help but laugh with him, collecting the frosting from your face and licking it off your finger when Cisco released his hold on you. “You’ve still got some,” Cisco started. “Here, let me.” He wiped the last of the frosting off your nose with his thumb, licking it once again when he was done and tucking your hair back behind your ear. 

You went to set the table and Barry you looked at you as if he were thinking something through in head. Cisco brought out the food and sat next to you, letting his hand rest on your thigh under the table and tracing circles through the fabric of your sweats. 

When you had finished eating, you excused yourself to the bathroom. Before you could even shut the door, you heard Barry’s voice, “Is something going on between you and Y/N?” You froze, crouching your ear to the cracked door. 

“What do you mean?” Cisco asked, nonchalantly. 

“I mean,” Barry said “You guys act like a couple. I already knew you guys liked to joke around and flirt at work, but I thought it was just a game you guys played.”

“Who says it’s not?”

“No, don’t give me that. I saw you two just now. You were so… domestic. If you’re not together you sure act like you are.” 

Cisco sighed, “Look, yes there’s something going on between us, but we haven’t exactly talked about it yet. Would I like a relationship with her, of course, I’d love it. But right now things are uncomplicated and easy, and I don’t wanna mess that up by pushing for more. I really like her, Barry.”

“Cisco, if you want her to be something more, you should ask her. I’m sure she feels the same way-”

“No. Not risking it, not this early on, not when I care about her this much. Plus we live together, things could get messy.”

“You do what you think is best. But don’t wait too long to tell her what you want,” Barry said.

“Right. Hey uh, do you think we could keep this between us? I don’t think Y/N really wants anyone on the team to know,” Cisco asked. 

“Of course.”

You turned to the sink and picked up your toothbrush absentmindedly. Cisco wanted a relationship. But he didn’t think you did and that was...wrong? Right? You didn’t know to be completely honest. Sure you liked Cisco, a lot. And you’d grown close to him quickly the last couple weeks. You were comfortable around him, and he made you smile more than you ever had before. Plus you had already been out on several dates. You’d made out, you’d cuddled, you’d talked into the early morning hours, hell you even lived together. The more you thought about it the more you realized you really did sound like a couple already. 

But you were still just getting to know each other, and if things didn’t work out you might be out of a place to stay. But Cisco wouldn’t just throw you out, would he? And what if things did work out, what then? You settle down with him in his apartment, adopt a dog, and fight crime together for the rest of your lives? It all sounded so foolish, but you felt your heart tug at the notion. 

You shook your head, bringing yourself back to the present, and walked out of the bathroom. “Where’s Barry?” you asked looking around. 

“He left. Said he wanted to be there when Iris woke up, the old sap,” he told you turning his back to you to finish cleaning.

“Cisco?” you started.

“Yeah, babe?” Cisco said wiping down the counter before spinning around to face you.

“Nothing,” you shook your head and forced a small smile. “Just wanted to look at you.”

Cisco smiled. “You can look at me all you want,” he said playfully, pulling you into him and giving you a kiss. For a moment, you felt your worries slip away.

*

You thought a lot about your new life with the team, and more importantly with Cisco, over the next few days. The more time you spent thinking about it, your place on the team, how you fit with these people, how warm and funny and attractive and thoughtful Cisco was, the more you realized you wanted to stay here for good. With him. You looked up when Cisco placed a kiss on the top of your head, pulling you out of your thoughts.

“What’s going on in that beautiful head of yours? You look a thousand miles away,” Cisco said, walking around to the front of the couch to sit next to you.

“Nothing,” you started to say but decided instead to share. “Actually I was thinking about you, well us, to be specific.”

“Oh?” Cisco asked, interest peaked.

“Cisco, things have been going so great since we met, and I really care about you-”

Cisco exhaled, his face dropping into an understanding frown. “But you want to end things,” he said nodding his head solemnly. 

“What? Cisco, no,” you said. “What I’m trying to say is I want to be with you.” When he stared at you open-mouthed you continued, “Like as a couple. I want people to know we’re together.”

“Not that I'm saying no or anything, definitely not saying no, but where is this coming from?” he asked. “Until now you’ve seemed perfectly content keeping us a secret, keeping things casual.”

You sighed. Of course this wasn’t gonna just be easy. “Well, I may have overheard you and Barry talking. About me.”

“Look,” Cisco began. “I know I said a lot of things, things I didn’t think you were ever gonna know I said, but you don’t have to try and force this just because it’s what I want.” 

“But I want it, too!” you interjected. “I’m not saying all this for your sake, or because I think I owe you something more. I’m saying it because I want, more than anything, to be with you. For real,” you said taking his hand in yours and pressing a kiss to his knuckles before lowering your hands to rest in your lap.

“You mean it?” Cisco asked a smile beginning to form on his face. 

“Yes,” you said through your own smile. 

“I wanna be with you, too. For real,” Cisco repeated your words to you. 

Your smile grew, “Good.” 

Cisco leaned in to plant a kiss against your mouth and you could feel his smile on your lips, kissing him back with all you had, only pulling away when you were desperate for air. Cisco pulled you onto his lap, your legs straddling his thighs, and connected your lips once more. You sighed into him, bringing your arms up to wrap around his neck. Cisco kissed down your jaw, eliciting a tiny moan from you, and nipped at the spot where your neck met your shoulder. 

“Sorry,” Cisco said when he noticed the slight pink mark on your skin where his mouth had been. “What’s that look?” he asked when he saw you staring down at him fondly.

You shrugged. “I’m happy,” you told him truthfully. 

“Imma keep it that way,” Cisco promised. 

*

You and Cisco walked into STAR Labs holding hands. When Barry caught sight of you he grinned widely and gave Cisco a proud wink. 

“That’s right people,” Cisco bellowed raising your joined hands up in the air. “We’re an item now, so jot that down.”

Iris couldn’t stop herself from laughing at Cisco’s enthusiasm, “Congrats guys,” she told you from where she leaned against Barry’s side, his arm slung over her shoulder. 

“Finally,” Caitlin said walking over to you and pulling the both of you into a hug. “I’m happy for you.”

You blushed at all the attention but nevertheless felt relieved to know everyone was behind your relationship. “Okay, okay,” you said. “Back to work, you guys. We’re training together today, right?” you asked looking up at Cisco. 

“Yep. And you better bring your A game, cause I’m not going easy on you this time,” he joked.

“As if you’ve ever gone easy on me,” you replied. Your previous training sessions with Cisco often left you sore and exhausted from being knocked down by and diving to avoid blasts. 

“True,” he agreed. “But it’s not exactly like you go easy on me either.” 

“True. You ready?”

“Actually, there’s something I need to show you, down in my workroom.”

“Okaaay,” you drawled out. “What’s in your workroom?”

“Oh, you’ll see. You’re gonna like it, trust me, babe,” Cisco said tugging on your hand to lead you away. “Okay, wait right there,” Cisco instructed you when you had reached his workroom. He moved to his desk and opened the large bottom drawer. You tried to peek around him from where you stood but his body blocked your view of whatever he held in his hands. He turned and walked back to you, a box in tow. He held it in front of you, “Alright, you can open it.”

You lifted the lid open and gasped in surprise. “Cisco,” you breathed out in a hushed tone. “Is this what I think it is?” He nodded excitedly. You pulled the suit out of the box, admiring the leather stitching. The top piece was black with deep red stripes going down the shoulders and continuing along the sides of the arms, yellow lining the zipper on the front. The pants were the same shade of black and had red stripes running down the sides of the legs, lining up with the ones on the jacket. It looked incredible. You placed it back in the box carefully and set it to the side and wrapped your arms around Cisco. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!” you squealed out. “I love it.”

Cisco laughed, hugging you back. “Glad you like it.”

“It kind of looks like yours,” you commented finally releasing him. 

“That was the plan. We’re partners after all,” Cisco said. “Now go on and get changed, you’re wearing this for training today.” 

You came back out, wearing the suit, and Cisco gawked at you. “It looks great on you.”

“Yeah, it does, doesn’t it?” you replied. “And it fits like a glove, which, I’m not even gonna ask how or when you got my measurements. I have a feeling the answer would scare me.”

Cisco made a face at you before he spun you around to look at you from every angle. “You really do look amazing.” You held his hand and watched as he pulled down his goggles and opened a breach. The two of you jumped through to start the day’s training, together.


End file.
